Hey there Whyvillians! Well this month as we all know, Whyville turned 10! That's one whole decade! So using this as inspiration I have decided to talk to Whyville's second oldest active Whyville citizen - Amanda. As many of you don't know, the account Amanda was transferred to Eden, who is the Amanda's sister. Please be aware of this.
So earlier this week I caught up with Amanda (Eden) to talk about the years that have passed. I started with a few questions then she went through and explained each year in her eyes.
Jank03: How did Amanda come about finding Whyville?
Amanda: I can remember my father's work colleague had a young daughter who played Whyville and suggested that Amanda should try it out. Unfortunately Amanda's friend is no longer active on Whyville, but Amanda kept going strong in Whyville for many years before handing over her account to me, Eden her younger sister.
Jank03: What was Amanda's first impression of Whyville?
Amanda: Amanda's first impression of Whyville was a good one. It obviously made her keep coming back for more. I can remember Amanda spending 100% of her time on Whyville, so I gather she loved it a lot.
1999
Amanda: 1999 was a great year, that is what I have heard from Amanda. I can remember her telling me that she used to search for people by visiting every chat room. It wasn't crowded like it is today, it was a good little community. One thing was that the citizens had a better relationship with the City Workers, they were more of a friend than a public authority. Amanda also wrote her very first Times article! Apart from that, Whyville was a great retreat for Amanda. 1999 year was a year that she would never forget.
2000
Amanda: I can personally remember 2000 well. This was the year I was first introduced to Whyville. Amanda used to let me procrastinate on her account, I used pick her nose and spend her clams at Akbar's. 2000 was the year Amanda first started to design, she was a good designer in my opinion in those years. After I got the swing of Whyville, Amanda made me my very own account, Eden. I still use that account to this day.
2001
Amanda: Was the official year of me actually being an active citizen of Whyville. I was so excited about actually participating in Whyville for real! I kept thinking that I would just log on and everyone would be my friend, but that was not the case. Over the year I worked up friendships and bonds with people. Some of which I kept friends with for many years later. Also I can remember Amanda was the seventh Richest Whyvillian then. 2001 was a great experience for me, and I will never forget it.
2002
Amanda: In 2002 Amanda officially gave me the account. I started to get myself established in Whyville. I became a Ymail Helper, which I must say was lots of fun! I ran for Senate and lost. But that didn't stop me, I continued to play and chat on Whyville.
2003
Amanda: 2003 was a slightly scary year for me. In that year I found out exactly how brutal Whyville could be. The account Eden, which was my first account was hacked by another Whyvillian. I can still remember to this day that I used some tricks to get it back, that of which are not acceptable anymore. In this year I once again ran for Senate, and lost once more. But the hacker who had stolen Eden ran for Senate too, everyone started to think I was cheating, which wasn't good. But after everything cleared up, the year ran smoothly.
2004
Amanda: I felt like I was unstoppable in 2004! I made so many friends, I meet so many new people, it was great! I finally met people that were my age, which was really good. But of course what goes up must come down. In 2004 I experienced first hand the brutal force of virtual bullying, I can tell you now, it was no fun at all. But I moved on and kept going strong. I ran for Senate again, lost once more. By this time I had spent all Amanda's clams and I managed to get one of Amanda's old accounts (catherine) hacked again. However I did get it back, after a while. 2004 was a great year for me, because I finally felt like I fitted in. I had friends and everything you could wish for, I finally felt like I had made a place for myself.
2005
Amanda: In 2005 I actually didn't run for Senate! Again Eden was hacked, I obviously did not learn. I started personally reading the Times every week and became a big fan! I made lots of cool looks and I finally realized that all my old parts were worth lots.
2006
Amanda: 2006 was the year that I became widely known. People even formed a fan club for me, that was lots of fun. In November of that year I actually bought my very first scion! Unfortunately in 2006 I didn't do much in Whyville, I was a lot more focused on school and I also had things on in my personal life.
2007
Amanda: Not much really happened, I quit for one month then came back. I joined a gang of Oldbies that was established, it was lots of fun. 2007 was not a big year for me in Whyville, no nothing really happened.
2008
Amanda: BEST YEAR EVER! I met one of my best friends on Whyville, Jank03! I won the Whyvillian in the Spotlight! I was lucky enough to be in the Times quite a lot through comics and such. I made really cool looks! I also got my sixth gold veteran medal.
2009
Amanda: Has so far been a blast! I have set lots of goals this year and they include: not getting hacked, run for Senate and win, write for the Times at least once and I will be a ten year veteran!
Whyville has a grown a lot since its beginning. I would like to extend a special thanks to the City Workers for bringing us such a great site. Whyville is indeed something we will are remember, and for that we are grateful! Some Whyvillians have been through it all, from start to today, but some are just starting out as we speak. Whoever you are, whenever you joined, Whyville is a place for everyone to come together and bond. It's a retreat for some and a hobby for others, what ever it may be, it will always remain something special to each and every one of us.
Happy Birthday Whyville! Myself and everyone else wish you all the best for the future!
Rex13: Happy Birthday Whyville! I've seen the growth of Whyville increase and hope it still does in Whyville's future. I joined almost five years ago! I can't believe Whyville is already 10! I remember logging on Whyville real early in the morning to buy the parts in new arrivals. For example, I would talk to Ladycb to see if she made any parts. When she said she did, I would already be setting my alarm. Anyways Happy 10th Whyville Birthday! I hope there are many more to come.
Ooooopppp: Happy Birthday, Whyville! Thank you for giving all of us such a great educational website to go to for the past ten years. One where we can meet interesting people from all over the world and learn so much in a safe environment. This site is fun and truly unique, and I'm glad to have been apart of it for nearly six out of it's ten years. I hope Whyville continues to grow, and can stay around for a very long time so that kids years from now can enjoy it and learn.
Darsh: Happy Birthday Whyville! :) I've been around here for a number of years, and I have met such a great bunch of people. I miss my good old friends from the Sunroof, but there is always awesome people around here. Thank you for making Whyville such a great and friendly place! My experience has been so awesome and it just keeps going. There is always new stuff to do and it's always a lot of fun. Either raising my salary or just chatting with some good friends! Thanks Whyville, for keeping it fresh and new! It really must be a cool place to still log in everyday after all these years. Happy Birthday!!
Sims2girl: Hey, Whyville. Well, it's that time of year again . . . Happy birthday, old buddy. We've been through a lot together, huh? Remember when I was a Newbie and spent all my time begging to get into Club Why? And no one was even there! And then I met kimker, and we got tight. It was awesome . . .Remember when I started a massive Twilight craze? Teehee, I'm sorry about that. I really didn't think it'd get so big, so fast . . . Well, Whyville. You're a good friend. To another ten years of prosperity. Alice - always the author.
Play2live: Happy Birthday Whyville and I'd like to give a shout of to two of my favorite City Workers, Turkeesub and Stachey!
Ciaobella: I'd like to give Whyville a very happy 10th birthday. =) It seems like yesterday when I was browsing around Whyville, drooling, like, "Oh my god! How do I chat???" -- trying to look for some message box to type in. I'll always remember all of the great friends I've made at Club Why over the years. I'd like to thank Whyville for being a part of my childhood :).
Ushersg: I remember when my friend first asked me if I had a "Whyville" . . . I had no idea what she was talking about but it wasn't long till Google helped me find this community she raved about. Before I knew it, I was literally hooked. Now-a-days, I don't go on NEARLY as much but Whyville is more than a website but something that contributed to my childhood and allowed me to grow. I met a lot of people on this website that I consider my friends, and because of Whyville, I am a lot kewler. Happy birthday, Whyville. -The Hottest Whyvillian Alive, USHERSG.
Dannyb0i: Hi Whyville, ahh yes the good old days! What can I say . . . Whyville was a very good site and had great people and activities . . . Now a days Whyville is like a gigantic high school filled with different people . . . There are some great people nowadays . . . like my friend Lexi6321, Darsh, Jank03 (aka, JUNK), Josh and Mary . . . You guys are great people . . . I would like to give a shout out to jugajug for scamming me out of 20 dollars and the greatest 2 CW's . . . Holykow, and Stachey!! Thanks everyone peace out!!
Morgan612: Dear Whyville, thanks for all the amazing times. We've been through a lot together, from obnoxious Newbie days, to slightly less obnoxious y-mail helper days, to less obnoxious Greek Theater days, and today, Times days. You've helped me meet new friends and to grow as a writer. Thanks, and HAPPY BIRTHDAY YO. Love, Morgan612.
Thanks Whyville =).
-Jank03
